Red and Near-Infrared Light

I want to share a recovery tool I've been using twice a day to help with a shoulder injury that had me genuinely worried. The best part: you basically just put it on and lie there, and things start to feel better. That's what it did for me, anyway.

How I hurt my shoulder

About two months ago, I reached over to pick up my daughter — she was having a rough night and I was moving her into my bed. As I lifted her, I felt something tweak in my shoulder. I didn't think much of it at the time. We went back to sleep.

The next morning I could barely lift my arm, and the shoulder was excruciating.

I went to my doctor — which I don't do unless I really know I need to. He ran some tests, looked at it, and told me I had a partial tear in my rotator cuff. As someone with five knee surgeries behind me, blown-out AC joints, plantar fasciitis, shin splints, neck pain — the whole catalog — my first thought was not another thing I have to figure out how to deal with. I'll be honest: I was worried.

What I did differently this time

In the past, I'd lean on eyesight drills, mobility work, trying to restore range of motion and get the muscles active again. All of that is genuinely useful, and I still believe in it.

But it wasn't the thing that moved the needle this time. What made the biggest difference — done twice a day while I literally just lay in bed — was something I hadn't leaned on before. The results were surprising enough that I wanted to write about it.

The tool: red light therapy

The tool is red light therapy. You've probably seen influencers talking about it all over social media lately. And yes, it looks like a silly pad covered in little red lights — but in my experience, it works.

It's getting mainstream attention too. There's been coverage of researchers discussing how red and near-infrared light may reduce pain, speed recovery, and even improve skin. Search "red light therapy" and you'll find people using it for a huge range of issues. What I want to talk about here is how it helped my shoulder feel significantly better over about 30 days.

How it actually works

All I did was place the pad over the sore area of my shoulder and relax.

The mechanism is interesting. At certain wavelengths, red light penetrates the skin, and when it does, it helps the cells produce more ATP — essentially cellular energy — along with antioxidants. More energy available to the cell means the cell can do its repair work faster.

Not all red light is created equal

Here's the catch: red light panels and belts vary enormously in quality.

Two things to look for. First, a wavelength in roughly the 620–670 nanometer range. Second, genuinely bright light, so it actually penetrates deep enough to reach the tissue you're trying to help. The $29.95 pads you'll find on Amazon are not going to deliver the kind of results I'm describing.

A note before you buy anything: I'm sharing my own experience recovering from an injury, not medical advice. Red light therapy is still an emerging area, results vary from person to person, and a partial tear is something to manage with your own doctor. Treat this as one tool among many, not a cure.

Want to see the tools I actually use?

I put together a free Recovery Masterclass where I walk through my favorite recovery tools — red light belts and panels, massage balls, vibrating tools, massage guns — and exactly how I use each one to feel better and recover faster.

If you want in, it's completely free. 👉Join the Masterclass